Through the Gate
by Vinividivinci
Summary: The Team heads 'through the gate' on a new mission.  Totally fluffy sweetness.


_**I'm still going to finish my other story but am taking a short break. This is a short story – a continuation of my "To Love is to Live Forever" story. It's just a little fluffy, sweetness. Please let me know if you like and if you want more of these. I'm getting back to The Road to Hell shortly. Thanks**_

"Daniel, are you ready?" Jack asked, looking over at his friend as he adjusted the straps on his pack.

"Yeah Jack – just checking to see that I've got everything. It's been a while you know."

"I know – but that's not really an excuse Daniel. You were always late!"

"Was not!"

"Were too!"

"No way Jack. Since when did I ever hold you up on a mission?"

"Uh – like almost always Dr. Jackson. Isn't that right Teal'c? You were always the last one to the gate room, lost in some book or staring at some rock. _I _remember!"

"He is right Daniel Jackson. I too remember waiting for you many times. Today is no exception."

"Okay, okay fine! I'm coming. Hey, you'd be the one who was sorry if I forgot something Jack. So, let's go."

"All right, finally! You all set Teal'c?" He glanced over at the tall man and couldn't help but grin. Teal'c was looking particularly…. uh … ferocious today! Wonder if he'd scare people? Well, that was never a bad thing, he thought. It was one of Teal'c's best abilities.

"All right campers, lets go …. through the gate and on to adventure!" He stepped forward, slowly and carefully. Today was an important day and he didn't want anything to go wrong. His teammates followed closely behind.

"And Daniel – don't forget to close the gate behind you. It bangs in the wind." He called to his friend who was following, watching to make sure he latched the gate that led into his yard. He and Sam had had it fenced in as soon as the boys began to walk. He wasn't taking any chances with his sons.

As he watched he grinned again. Daniel was dressed like a mad scientist. Very fitting, he laughed to himself. Teal'c, on the other hand, had come dressed as a Wookie – his love of Star Wars obviously influencing his choice. The boys had loved it, squealing when they saw him. David had cried "Bah" – thinking Teal'c was a Teddy Bear. Teal'c had looked slightly offended and had tried to explain to the 14 month old boy that he was not, in fact, a bear but a noble warrior who fought alongside Han Solo. The explanation clearly didn't mean a thing as the boys continued to giggle and cry 'Bah". Daniel and Jack had both just laughed.

Today was the boy's first Halloween (they had been too young last year) and Jack had asked Teal'c and Daniel to accompany the boys and him 'trick or treating'. The two toddlers didn't have a clue what was going on and there was no way Sam would let them eat any of the candy, but Jack had missed a lot of Halloweens – and frankly, wanted to show off his boys. And what the heck – if he snuck a little candy, who was to know! He certainly wouldn't tell Sam.

She wasn't coming with them but had opted to stay home and hand out candy. Although not as big as with her first pregnancy with the twins, she was still big enough, at almost 6 months, not to want to walk out on a chilly evening. So, she helped dress the boys (all three of them) and had sent them on their way. Daniel was entrusted with the diaper bag and Teal'c would help watch the boys with Jack.

As he held their tiny hands in his, walking very slowly to accommodate the still wobbly little walkers, he couldn't help but think back on the last two years. They had certainly been some of the best of his life. He was wonderfully, gloriously happy with an gorgeous wife and two amazing sons. Every day he woke up and looked at the two little munchkins (he laughed again to himself) and couldn't believe how blessed he was.

The two boys were sweet, like Sam, but had a streak of O'Neill mischievousness. If they didn't watch them closely they could both get into a load of innocent trouble. He never would forget the time he got engrossed in a report from work. Things were very quiet, for which he was thankful. The boys had gone down for their naps which allowed him time to concentrate on some very difficult, technical issues. After he'd been working a couple of hours he suddenly whipped his head up. It dawned on him that quiet had gone on much too long and by now, was, in fact, _**not**_ a good thing. He stood up quickly and raced out the door of his office. He looked in the family room and then in the boy's bedroom but couldn't find them.

His heart was pounding in fear. What if they'd wandered out to the street or been kidnapped. They had recently figured out how to get out of their cribs and he had meant to figure something out to stop them. If anything happened to either of them he knew he'd never forgive himself. Terrified, he was about to grab his cell phone and call for help when he heard a soft giggle. Thank God! He followed the sound into his and Sam's bathroom where he found the boys!

The two, very black, very dirty boys!

"Oh my God!" he groaned. Sam was going to kill him! Maybe he and the boys should just leave now for Chulak and disappear. But no, that wouldn't help. She'd just track them down and _**then**_ kill them.

David and Daniel looked up at him and both gave him a big smile. As sick as he was at the mess, he couldn't help but grin as two little mouths, with a smattering of tiny, white baby teeth opened in the totally black faces. Somehow, the boys had gotten hold of his black shoe polish (the stuff he used for his dress shoes) and had painted each other with it. Not only were their faces and bodies covered with the gooey mess, but so too was the bathroom. Even Sam's special 'Egyptian Cotton' towels (the ones she'd looked so hard to find) were covered in black.

Yup. Sam was going to kill him. In fact, he expected she'd be so mad she'd probably zat him three times and rid the world of one very, in-the-dog-house, Daddy.

"What am I going to do with the two of you?" he sighed. They grinned back and both started to babble, laughing and giggling.

"It's definitely not funny guys. Mommy is going to be very mad at us." That instantly removed the smiles from their faces. Sam didn't very often get angry but when she did … watch out! Daniel's lips began to quiver. He was very sensitive and there was nothing he hated more than having Mommy or Daddy upset with him. Soon, he was crying fiercely. That, of course, got David crying. Suddenly Jack was faced with two wailing children covered in shoe polish. Oy! What a day.

He walked over to the boys and gave them each a hug – very carefully.

"It's okay Daniel, David. Let's get this cleaned up and maybe Mommy won't notice" (yeah right. It'll be a cold day in Netu before that happens. Sam had a sixth – and seventh and eighth - sense when it came to the O'Neill boys and trouble).

He then went to the tub and began filling it with warm water. A bath was the only option at present. He quickly stripped the little boys, tossing their blackened clothes in the corner. They'd have to go in the garbage. When the water was deep enough he picked them up and plunked them into the tub. This got them calmed down as they both loved their bath time.

As he watched them carefully he began to pick up the towels and reached under the sink for the cleaning supplies. He began to scrub all the surfaces covered in polish. It took quite a while but he figured it would go better for all of them if the evidence was (mostly) eradicated before one AF Colonel returned.

When he'd finally finished the bathroom he turned his attention to the two boys. Their time in the bath had removed some of the mess although they were now sitting in a black pool of water. Sighing, he reached into the tub and let the water out. He then grabbed the spray nozzle and soap.

"All right my boys – time for the scrub a dub dub!"

The boys laughed and each shouted. This looked like fun.

By the time he was finished, Jack was soaking wet and half covered in polish himself, but at least the boys were clean, although a little red. He'd really had to scrub to get everything off. They were starting to get fussy and he knew it was time for a quick snack and then a nap – both for him and his sons. He was exhausted.

He'd been right, too. Sam had been totally ticked at all of them – but especially at Jack. When she'd found out about her good towels he'd thought she was going to rip him a new one. He'd recognized, even at the time, that part of her anger was due to hormones and morning sickness. He figured too that she was still a bit upset about getting pregnant again so soon after the twins. Although he thought it was terribly unfair that she blamed him. It's not as if he'd done it by himself!

He knew that she had a right to be upset about the polish – he had been careless – but he admitted to himself that he also felt a bit hurt. She'd been in a lousy mood for weeks and had taken it out on him. It's not like she was perfect. She made mistakes too.

He really did try and deal with it calmly. He appreciated that she was feeling miserable (fortunately he didn't seem to be experiencing the morning sickness this pregnancy, although he could certainly remember it from the last!) but there was really nothing he could do about it other than try and help as much as possible with the boys. And it wasn't as if he'd left the mess for her!

He spent all that Saturday at the mall, looking for replacement towels. Shopping was probably his least favorite thing to do – and shopping for linens was about as far down his list of ways to spend a Saturday that he could imagine. He was finally successful although he couldn't believe how much he had to pay for the damn things. Why Egyptian Cotton was so expensive he didn't know. And why Sam had to have them was even more of a mystery. Personally, things 'Egyptian' still gave him the heebee geebies.

It was worth it in the end, however. He gave Sam the nicely wrapped (they had a wrapping place in the mall), package after supper that evening. She'd still barely spoken to him so he hoped this would help.

"What's this Jack?" she asked with a frown. She looked up at him suspiciously, figuring that he was trying to buy his way back into her good graces. She knew she was being somewhat unfair to him, but she'd been feeling awful and for some reason that translated into anger towards Jack.

She opened the package, convinced that he'd gone and purchased some kind of sexy teddy or something (typical man!). When she pulled out the towels – the exact same ones she'd spent so much time finding – she looked up at her husband, who sat there with a very anxious look on his face, and promptly burst into tears.

From feeling anxious Jack now zoomed into utter panic mode. Oh God, he thought, I did the wrong thing. Maybe I should have bought her something sexy! It was when the body of his very own sexy, pregnant and emotional Colonel launched itself into his arms that he realized he hadn't made a mistake. In fact, he thought to himself with a self-satisfied grin – he had done exactly the right thing. Thank God!

"Jack", she sobbed. "How did you find them? Oh thank you! I'm so sorry. I've been such a witch. Can you forgive me?" She kept crying until she heard the whimpers coming from her sons. They were both in their highchairs and were upset that she was crying.

"It's okay Daniel, David", she cried, getting up from Jack's lap and moving to the boys. "Mommy's not sad – I'm happy. See", she gave them a big smile and then reached down and gave them each a kiss. Soon they were grinning happily up at their parents. All was again right in their world.

Yes, the towels were the perfect gift, he thought again as he lay in bed cuddled up against a naked, sleeping Sam. Who woulda thought!

He was pulled back to the present when he felt an insistent tug on his hand. Looking down at his son he saw that Daniel was staring at something, his eyes big and round. Looking over to where the toddler was looking, Jack saw a kid, no more than 10 or 12, dressed as a zombie. To the adult eye the boy didn't look particularly frightening, but, to a small child it was probably somewhat scary. He knelt down and pulled the boys hands until they were both facing him.

"Okay guys, listen up. You're going to see some funny and some scary people today – but it's just pretend. You don't need to be afraid because it's just for fun. Do you understand Daddy?" he asked each of the boys. David gave him a big grin and tugged his hand – he wanted to keep going. Daniel looked a little hesitant but then glanced at his father, Uncle Daniel and especially uncle Teal'c and figured he was safe. Finally, he smiled too and turned around, ready to go on an adventure with his Daddy.

"Everything okay Jack?", asked Daniel.

"Yup – just don't want the boys getting frightened. I can't believe some of the costumes parents let their kids wear!"

"Well, you wanted to dress the boys as the flying monkeys from the Wizard of Oz. That's pretty scary."

"No it's not. They're just monkeys!"

"Evil, flying monkeys. Don't tell me they didn't scare you when you were a kid. I know I h ad nightmares the first time I saw that movie."

"Yeah – maybe. Well anyway, Sam wouldn't let me. I think she must have had nightmares too. They still look cute though, even though I would have liked to see them in monkey outfits."

"Yes indeed", added Teal'c. "It would have been very fitting."

Both Daniel and Jack stopped dead and turned to look at Teal'c, unsure at first of his meaning. Finally noticing his small grin Jack laughed out loud.

"Are you calling my boys monkeys, Teal'c?"

Teal'c nodded once. "Indeed".

"I guess you're right – they are little monkeys." He looked down at the two boys affectionately.

"Well, here we go – the first house. Now remember David, Daniel, when the people open the door you shout, 'trick or treat' in a loud voice. You got that?"

The boys babbled back at him. They both had a very limited vocabulary although Jack had been working with them all week on the words for tonight. Sam had laughed at him, telling him that that was way too hard for them at this age. Well, he'd find out if they could say anything.

As they approached the first house Teal'c and Daniel hung back at the curb and Jack walked with the boys to the door. He felt a wave of nostalgia, remembering doing this with Charlie. It was moments like these that memories of his first-born son would come back. The memories were bitter sweet but he didn't want to forget them – at the same time he didn't want them interfering with the joy he experienced with his new family. He allowed himself a few, brief moments of reflection and then pulled himself back to the present. He reached out and knocked on the door.

He looked at the boys and they were practically jumping up and down in excitement. He could hear both of them muttering 'teeet' – that was about all they could manage. They each clutched a plastic pumpkin pails in their hands, waiting for the door to open.

As soon as it did, both the boys froze and stared up at the lady dressed all in black (the woman was wearing a witch costume).

"Well hello young men. What are you dressed as? Oh, how cute! Would you like some candy?" She knelt down and held out the bowl. Both boys, terrified of this strange ritual, pressed their faces into their father's legs, refusing to look or take any candy.

"Sorry", laughed Jack. "First time 'trick or treating' – I don't think they know quite what to do."

"No worries", the woman laughed. "My kids were exactly the same. Here", she reached in and took a couple of pieces of candy and reached over and dropped them in the pails. "Happy Halloween".

Jack thanked her and led the two boys back down the walk. As soon as they reached Teal'c and Daniel they began jabbering away, as if they had just had the best time in the world. Little Daniel ran up to Teal'c and took his hand, muttering 'teet'. He pulled his big 'uncle' towards the next house, clearly ready to go again.

"Would you like to take them to the next house Teal'c?" asked Jack. As far as he knew, Teal'c had never been out 'trick or treating' before either.

"Thank you O'Neill. I'd be honored to take young David and Daniel." He turned to the two boys. "Would you like to accompany me to the door young O'Neill's?"

David ran up and grabbed the large Jaffa's other had and together the two boys dragged him up the walkway. Daniel and Jack stood back and watched.

"Do you think he'll know what to do?" asked Daniel.

"Hope so. He might just scare the homeowner though. Wait! My camera." At that he reached into his pocket and pulled out the camera and began snapping pictures. These would definitely be ones for the family album.

After a couple of minutes Teal'c returned with the two boys who were again jumping up and down in glee.

"How did it go Teal'c?" asked Jack.

"Very well O'Neill, although neither one of your sons chose to speak. I had to utter the correct phrase. The homeowner seemed very anxious to give me the candy." He pointed to the buckets. Jack looked in and whistled.

"Boy, you hit the jackpot Teal'c. Looks like she gave you half of her candy."

Daniel looked in and grinned. "Probably terrified of the giant Teddy Bear and wanted to get rid of him."

"I am _**not**_ a Teddy Bear Daniel Jackson. You do a disservice to a proud warrior when you say that."

"Okay Teal'c – she was terrified of the giant Wookie."

Both of the twins were tired of the conversation and wanted to continue. Jack once again took their hands and they walked to a few more houses. After a short time, he decided they'd had enough. They were starting to get overexcited which would soon lead to tears. So, turning around the five of them headed back to the house where Sam would be waiting with drinks and snacks.

As they neared the house the two little boys began to bounce and pull their father.

"Mommy, Mommy", they cried, spotting Sam as she opened the door to some kids. Once they'd reached the gate, Jack let them run up to the house where Sam was waiting. Kneeling down she gave each of them a hug and admired their pumpkin pails half filled with candy.

"Teet Mommy, Teet!" they both shouted. She laughed and reached into her own bowl and put a piece of candy in each of their buckets. They smiled and gave her a big, sloppy kiss.

"Okay, inside Tin Man, Lion. Mommy has a snack for both of you." She watched as her two little darlings scrambled inside and then turned to the men who had arrived at the doorstep.

"Hi guys. How was it?" she asked

"Fine, they had a great time although they froze anytime someone answered the door."

She laughed. "Yeah, I can imagine. Still, it looks like they collected some loot. What to do with it is the question."

"Well, after the kids are in bed let's break it open and feast on Halloween Candy!" suggested Jack.

"Maybe a little", she agreed, eyeing the candy hungrily. God – pregnancy!

As they all made their way into the house Jack stopped Sam, grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. Eyeing her cute costume he grinned.

"Come here Dorothy! Give me a kiss!"

She turned towards him and reached up, pulling his head down and kissing him on the mouth with a long, sexy kiss.

"There you go Scarecrow! Now get going, we have guests! You can wait until later for more!" She swatted him on the backside as he walked past, admiring his trim and very sexy butt, even dressed as he was. She laughed as he began to sing.

"If I only had a brainnnnnnn!"

Yes, she thought, this was the best Halloween ever!"

_**Happy Halloween everyone!**_


End file.
